iTunes Review

Spoon’s eighth album, 2010’s Transference, alters their attack ever so slightly. Less lush than their 2007 breakthrough hit Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, there’s still plenty of sublime pop lurking in this duo (plus others). “The Mystery Zone” crackles like a hit single in waiting, the pianos coasting to the surface as the song swells from its sparse beginnings. Spoon are masters of mood and dynamic. The album’s core, beginning with “Who Makes Your Money” and working through “Trouble Comes Running,” makes for a revisit towards the terse pop one finds on Joe Jackson’s I’m the Man with the additional tonal colors one expects from Brian Eno. After four substantial albums released in the past decade, Spoon show no sign of losing their sound or soul. “Written In Reverse” jams forth with a street-tough walk. “Goodnight Laura” delivers a welcome but unexpected piano ballad. It’s called being “in the zone” and Spoon are there showing off their formidable skills.

Customer Reviews

This is Spoon, dirty and mean!

by
maoconnell

I really like this stuff, but this isn't the cute and heart warming Spoon from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. This is the Spoon that, to quote Stranger than Fiction, says "I Rock." My favorite track is "Trouble Comes Running," because it's pretty catchy to me. 4/5 because it's awesome, but not my favorite

So nice

by
uovagabond

One word for Transference; progressive. We get the classic, steady melody and stripped down cuts that Spoon have been producing since Telefono and perfected on Kill the Moonlight. Where this album becomes interesting and fresh is in the variety of sounds that come into your ears.

"Mystery Zone", "Is Love Forever", "Got Nuffin" and "Trouble Comes Running" are the most upbeat tracks that deliver fantastic rhythms in different styles. "Mystery Zone" has a prominent bass line that keeps things moving until a ominous guitar refrain that doesn't disappoint. "Is Love Forever" is one of my favorite tracks with is punchy drums and tasty guitar layering the whole way through. "Trouble Comes Running" has a "Jonathan Fisk" twinge to it without the fuzz and some acoustic breaks but it maintains it's pulse the entire time. "Got Nuffin" is just fantastic, the guitar possesses a more prominent role and it's mournful riffs have a solo vibe to them that are a welcome surprise.

Along with the energy come a couple of heartfelt tracks in "Who Makes your Money?". This is my favorite track due to its just plain uniqueness. Spoon gives us completely new perspective on their direction as musicians with this one. It resembles "Paper Tiger" with its keyboard presence and Britt's attention to lyrics but it is much more melancholy than cute. "Goodnight Laura" is essentially a lullaby with nothing else except piano and vocals.

"Written in Reverse" and "I Saw the Light" are definitely worth your time as well. They both possess quality instrumentation which gives each their own identity without the need for words in the latter half of each track.

This is a summary of my top picks but every song deserves your time. Spoon continues to evolve and deliver creatively with each release but this one is easily the most well rounded work they have put out. They deliver in every facet of their sound and I continue to be impressed by their growth.

Exactly the album at exactly the right time in their career

by
Sanchez2175

You can almost see this album coming if you look back over their previous 6 full length releases. Gimme Fiction beefed up their sound and exposed them to a wider audience. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga took that one step further and Spoon got as close to mainstream as they ever have in terms of exposure. Transference is a perfect amalgamation of their previous work. There are songs that would fit perfectly on Kill The Moonlight or Girls Can Tell. I just finished listening to the entire album all the way through and it's nothing if not classic Spoon. These guys are on a streak that few have produced. They just keep churning out passionately beautiful and and times achingly melancholic music. I can't wait to see what the guys come up with next. I'm not a fan of singling out individual songs to buy on an album of this quality. Buy the whole thing, that's the way it was meant to be enjoyed.

Biography

Formed: 1994 in Austin, TX

Genre: Alternative

Years Active: '90s, '00s, '10s

With a heady blend of precision punk and serpentine classic rock (the band has drawn comparisons to everyone from the Pixies and Sonic Youth to Elvis Costello and Tom Petty), enigmatic, Texas-based indie pop outfit Spoon went from underground press darlings to one of the genre's premier commercially and critically acclaimed alternative rock acts. Formed in Austin by singer/guitarist Britt Daniel and drummer Jim Eno, Spoon released its debut EP, Nefarious, on the small Texas imprint Fluffer Records...